January 2012 - Big Birthday. Thinking Cape Town

cazziebo

Celebrating my half century in mid Jan and would like to go somewhere special. :beer:

I had always envisaged celebrating with my daughters and for the past 10 years or so we've talked about the Grand Canyon but DD1 is likely to be on placement in Cardiff (can't get time off) and DD2 is currently travelling in Aus with plans to stay there until June 2012 when her visa runs out.

So just OH and me. We had thought skiing but OH has never skied and it wouldn't be much of a holiday for him in the nursery class (not that I'm a terrific skier but do love it).

Looking for ideas for alternatives. Only ever done one package holiday and hated it. We are quite happy just being with each other; so no requirement for jolly holiday reps or organised activities. We're torn between an exotic beach or an interesting city, but would prefer somewhere that's not freezingly cold. any ideas MSE-ers? The less cost the better but could do up to around 2k.

Matt2389

Have you thought about South Africa? I went at christmas, and the weather was great; being in the southern hemisphere! The beaches in Cape Town were beautiful, plus a lot of history i.e. robeen island, and tour of Nelson Mandela's prison etc! Great place to chill and relax but also a lot of interesting stuff to go and see! GO! Ha!

knightstyle

Well my wife booked a surprise trip to Berlin for mine and it was great, loads to do and lots of shows for the evenings, found half price tickets on sale the same morning. Only had 5 days, could have done with at least twice as long.

cazziebo

knightstyle wrote: »

Well my wife booked a surprise trip to Berlin for mine and it was great, loads to do and lots of shows for the evenings, found half price tickets on sale the same morning. Only had 5 days, could have done with at least twice as long.

Thanks-just back from Berlin-fabulous city!

Mardrew

Ooh, I'm going to be 50 in October and I am, too, after some inspiration on where to go, but I am just after a European city break. I might take a look at Berlin.

Anyway OP, I don't wish to hijack your thread so back to your question. We had 10 nights in Hong Kong in early April 2010 and we loved it. We especially loved all the contrasts. We split our stay between Kowloon, Macau and Hong Kong Island. I booked it all independently. From memory the flights cost approx £1000 and the accommodation was also approx £1000. (These are the total prices for 2 people.) We used Priceline Name Your Price and the ICH Friends & Family link that is on this forum for our accommodation.

This is a link to a trip report I did shortly after getting back to give you some idea of things that you could do there - http://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/ShowTopic-g294217-i1496-k3592972-Trip_Report_10_nights_3_13_April_2010-Hong_Kong.html

I don't know what the weather would be like in January and whether it is a good time to go or not.

bcl999

I second Matt2389 suggestion of South Africa. It's easy to organise your own trip and you don't have to worry about language problems once you are there. The only drawback might be your budget - it's not as cheap as it used to be and the airfares have shot up too.

jodieh12

South East Asia would win for me, you could combine Bali or Penang or Langkawi with somewhere like Singapore and Kuala Lumpur, all done independently should come to no more than £2000 for both of you, check out trip advisor as a starting point.

Jo

ponymad_3

The SA suggestion is def a great one and the one thing which is good for a Big celebration is the opportunity to do really memorable things there. You did nt say how long a trip you d like for your money, but whilst its true that costs have risen you get top class for 3 star in many other places. Capetown would be my choice as even a 5 day trip is not a problem. I would totally recommend TAdvisor forum if you plan this I have used myself and they have really great specialist who will answer any question for you. ( I would add too!) For a much nearer option well within budget with a decent chance of sunshine one of the Spanish cities mihgt fit the bill. My choice is Barcelona and I visit most early febs for my own birthday. Rarely have we had poor weather but it is fine during the day for sunny lunches but cold at night. It would help to know what your likes and dislikes are to help you more. ... Culture Wine Tasting Sitting on a beach

cazziebo

Gosh - thanks everyone. I'd never even considered South Africa. That's a definite possible. I also like the idea of Asia - never been.

I have a lot of family in US and Canada so tended to always go there. I've done quite a few European cities, but as this is a BIG one :eek: I'd really like to go a bit further (got friends in Barca so know it well). Outside of that we're both quite easy to please - not into sunbathing, like to experience different cultures etc. We're both into good food and I used to have a real interest in wine (worked in the trade) but not that bothered now -gets boring when you're spitting it all out!

So glad I posted. Will definitely look into both. Thanks :T

Matt2389

Hey, if you're interested in Asia, sign up to Air Asia's alerts, they often have crazy flash sales like £300 or less return to Kuala Lumpur, from there £20 odd or less to Thailand, Indonesia etc, so I'd recommend signing up to that! Can't hurt!

ishicom

I have just come back from Dubai stopped at the Atlantis on the palm it was amazing . I am 50 next year but i will not be able to top this holiday